Monfortino and Masseto: the top of the classification of the Italian Grand Cru by Gelardini & Romani

The Barolo Monfortino Riserva by Giacomo Conterno and the Masseto at the top, with average bottle prices above 400 euros, then the Brunello di Montalcino Riserva by Biondi Santi and Case Basse by Gianfranco Soldera, the Barbaresco Riserva Red Label by Bruno Giacosa and the Amarone Riserva di Quintarelli between 300 and 400 euros per bottle, and then again the Amarone Riserva by Romano dal Forno, the Barolo Riserva Rocche del Falletto by Bruno Giacosa, the Montepulciano d’Abruzzo of Valentini and the Sassicaia of Tenuta San Guido which, on average, there are bottle prices between 200 and 300 euros: here is the top of the new classification of the Grand Cru d’Italia, the 30 most sought after and appreciated Italian wine labels by collectors and investors from all over the world, classified according to the highest price levels and the lowest percentage of unsold lots registered by Gelardini & Romani Wine Auction, the only auctioneer specializing in Italian wines to have been successful abroad, particularly in an important market such as Hong Kong. The ten-year ranking, in fact, shows that the average values have increased by 29%, to the point that to the five original price ranges into which the classification was divided, a new one was added, a sort of “first upper price range”, for wines over 400 euros per bottle. If four labels, Gelardini & Romani explain, in the period 2012/2018 did not reach the necessary parameters to be included in the classification, another four entered thanks to a significant increase in prices in the reference period, such as Barolo by Bartolo Mascarello (+51%), Barolo Barolo by G. Borgogno (+77%), Turriga by Argiolas and Barolo by Ceretto (+7%).
Another significant aspect is the growth of Piedmont, mostly at the disadvantage of Tuscany: “If until 2016 the classification included 16 Tuscan labels and 9 Piedmontese labels, today these two regions are equivalent, with 12 labels each.” The auction house led by Flaviano Gelardini and Raimondo Romani underlines that “it is clear that the market, now mature and qualified, is rewarding more and more monovarietal and territorial wines that can boast a history of vintages with a consistent and well-defined path. If, until a few years ago, the guides in the sector were able to target the tastes of the market, now the collector-consumer, increasingly curious and prepared - Gelardini & Romani- emphasizes the “consistency” of the philosophy in the vineyard and the “continuity” of production, rather than the “scores” assigned by the critics; whose opinion, however, remains still decisive compared to the judgment on the quality of the harvests. In this scenario, the historical/library of wineries/old vintages becomes more and more central in order to demonstrate, also through auctions, the longevity of a single label and, consequently, have more wine lovers.
The fine wines market is becoming increasingly similar to the art market, where uniqueness and rarity are appreciated, as demonstrated by the reactions of the market and part of the 2006 production and the subsequent exit from the Consortium of Brunello by the winery Case Basse of Gianfranco Soldera (whose Brunelli recorded an average growth, record, of 132% of the awards compared to the average values 2005/2011) or Italian wines, such as Franco Biondi Santi, Bruno Giacosa, Giuseppe Rinaldi, Edoardo Valentini and Giuseppe Quintarelli, who started a race to reassure that the last vintages were produced within a certain “system” or with the unmistakable “touch” of the “founder”, thus definitively elevating the wine to a work of art”.
A scenario that emerges from the new classification, which confirms what was anticipated in recent days to WineNews by Raimondo Romani: “the focus on Italian wine has grown and is growing a lot, thanks to the many varieties that our country can offer, which for the collector is fascinating and amusing, and on average there is no longer the abyss that there was with France.
Of course, the vintage detail counts, in fact, the French, with Bordeaux and Burgundy, have many level labels that reach the fifties of the last century, and we start from the ‘90s, or from the ‘80s with some Barolo and Barbaresco and not much else. But things are changing, it takes time, and we believe that the outlook is very positive. Also because wine, in this part of the world, is becoming part of everyday life at all levels, not only among the rich, and this greatly expands the market, which, moreover, is moving decisively more and more towards elegant and fine wines”.

Focus: the new classification of the Italian Grand Cru by Gelardini & Romani

The upper range (over 400 euros per bottle)

Piemonte Barolo Riserva Monfortino G. Conterno
Toscana Masseto

I range (300-400 euros per bottle)
Toscana Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Soldera
Toscana Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Biondi Santi
Piemonte Barbaresco Riserva Red Label Bruno Giacosa
Veneto Amarone Riserva Quintarelli

II range (200-300 euros per bottle)
Veneto Amarone Riserva Dal Forno
Piemonte Barolo Riserva Rocche del Falletto Bruno Giacosa
Abruzzo Montepulciano dʼAbruzzo Valentini
Toscana Sassicaia Tenuta San Guido

III range (150-200 euros per bottle)
Piemonte Barolo Riserva Granbussia Aldo Conterno
Piemonte Barolo Bartolo Mascarello
Piemonte Sperss Gaja

IV range (100-150 euros per bottle)
Piemonte Barbaresco Gaja
Piemonte Barolo Cascina Francia Giacomo Conterno
Piemonte Barolo Giuseppe Rinaldi
Piemonte Barolo Cannubi Boschis Sandrone
Lazio Fiorano Red Boncompagni Ludovisi
Toscana Solaia Antinori
Toscana Ornellaia
Toscana Le Pergole Torte Montevertine

V range (50-100 euro per bottle)
Piemonte Barolo G. Borgogno
Toscana Chianti Riserva Il Poggio Castello di Monsanto
Toscana Flaccianello
Sardegna Turriga
Toscana Tignanello
Toscana Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Ripe Al Convento Frescobaldi
Piemonte Barolo (Cru) Ceretto
Campania Terra di Lavoro Galardi
Toscana Paleo Le Macchiole